The event highlighted the importance of gender-sensitive budgeting to ensure a comprehensive approach to gender equality in the newly approved public policy documents at all stages of decision-making and implementation. It also emphasized the role of public institutions in gender-sensitive budgeting and their capacity to report on budget execution based on national mechanisms.
Additionally, examples of best practices in implementing gender-sensitive budgeting and the results of various studies and analyses conducted at the national level in this area were presented.
State Secretary Felicia Bechtoldt underscored the significant importance of gender-sensitive budgeting, particularly in the context of the approval and implementation of the Program for Promoting and Ensuring Gender Equality in the Republic of Moldova for 2023-2027. "Integrating gender equality and creating a society based on equality require revising processes, actions, and strategic directions in all areas of activity at the central, regional, and local levels. It is crucial that the new policy documents incorporate the gender dimension according to the needs and issues of both women and men," the state secretary remarked.
Dominika Stojanovska, the UN Women Country Representative in Moldova, presented regional progress in implementing gender-sensitive budgeting, linking it to the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and Moldova's European integration perspective.
It is worth noting that, although Moldova has made considerable progress in promoting women's rights and ensuring gender equality, the positive dynamics remain modest. Challenges in this area include a lack of clear guidelines for incorporating the gender dimension in annual budget planning, insufficient capacity-building activities on this topic, and a lack of monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for this type of policy.
The event concluded with the participants' joint decision to develop and sign a Roadmap for ensuring gender-sensitive budgeting for 2023, with further planning perspectives for a more extended period.
Source: Ministry of Labor and Social Protection
